Paperback, 311 pages
English language
Published March 16, 1998 by Anchor Books.
It is the world of the near future, and Offred is a Handmaid in the home of the Commander and his wife. She is allowed out once a day to the food market, she is not permitted to read, and she is hoping the Commander makes her pregnant, because she is only valued if her ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she was an independent woman, had a job of her own, a husband and child. But all of that is gone now ... everything has changed.
Interesting world building, but impeded by navel gazing prose. Further sullied by an ending that was almost as bad as, "...but it was all a dream!"
After 20+ years, I re-read this book both because my book club is discussing it next week and because I wanted to re-read it in conjunction with the excellent Hulu miniseries. I highly recommend it for the latter purpose, as the ways in which the series diverges from the book are very interesting in themselves. Regardless of whether you are watching the series, this book is a must-read for all women in this extraordinary political climate, as an important reminder of where an autocracy enabled by a populace that embraces the erosion of civil liberties can lead.
Absolutely lived up to the hype.
4.5 stars
This is too damn scary, given the current political climate in the United States. As we swing toward a strong right-wing militaristic future, and male US senators silence their female counterparts, and men decide what rights and healthcare women may keep, this book strikes close to current events.
The Handmaid's Tale depicts a reality that I hope never comes to fruition. I take it as a reminder of what and why we must fight against oppression of women and minorities, relationships, and education. Another reminder that totalitarianism is not a happy and fuzzy place. It is hell, created by other people, that does not benefit but a small portion of society.
“Ordinary, said Aunt Lydia, is what you are used to. This may not seem ordinary to you now, but after a time it will. It will become ordinary.”
Let's not let the current climate become ordinary.
The religious right in America seizes control of the government by blaming terrorist acts on Islamic fundamentalists, throwing the country into disarray and confusion, and taking advantage of this to repeal laws giving women equal rights and control of their bodies, and instead dropping the nation into some kind of religious fundamentalist patriarchy where white men rule supreme and women's only purpose is to bear more healthy Caucasian children. This book was written in 1986, hard to believe in 2017 it suddenly seems so very relevant...
an exceptionally depressing account
Written in 1985, I should’ve read this book ages ago. But, considering our current fraught and frightening political climate, now is actually a profoundly fitting time to delve into one of the most upsetting yet eerily plausible dystopian stories I’ve read yet. The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a not-so-futuristic United States in which the government has been overthrown by an extreme Christian movement that establishes a totalitarian theocracy under which human rights become severely limited and extreme class divisions are created. Women are stripped of all their rights (they aren’t even allowed to read) and, for the class known as “handmaids”, even their personhood is lost. These women are breeding stock, valued only insofar as their ovaries are viable, kept for reproductive purposes in order to aid the ruling class during a period of sharply declining births. Our titular Handmaid is a woman named Offred, who remembers what the …
Written in 1985, I should’ve read this book ages ago. But, considering our current fraught and frightening political climate, now is actually a profoundly fitting time to delve into one of the most upsetting yet eerily plausible dystopian stories I’ve read yet. The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a not-so-futuristic United States in which the government has been overthrown by an extreme Christian movement that establishes a totalitarian theocracy under which human rights become severely limited and extreme class divisions are created. Women are stripped of all their rights (they aren’t even allowed to read) and, for the class known as “handmaids”, even their personhood is lost. These women are breeding stock, valued only insofar as their ovaries are viable, kept for reproductive purposes in order to aid the ruling class during a period of sharply declining births. Our titular Handmaid is a woman named Offred, who remembers what the world was like before as she endures what it has become. Hers is a tale of survival, resilience, and resistance. Right now Offred’s story feels less like dystopian satire than a dire warning and a rallying call. Nolite te bastardes carborundorum.
I think I would have liked this book if I hadn't had my hopes up based on friends high praises. As is I feel quite lukewarm towards this book. I started reading it with the expectation of a hard topic and something serious to ponder and was met with "blue is for wife, red is for vessel..." etc. Besides the colour scheme which felt childish and silly I felt cheated by only having the one narrator. I kind of get that it fits with the uncertainty of the regime, but it still feels like I get what this poetic word-games loving woman conjured up, and not all the realities. My favourite thing is to get into other peoples heds using books, well, this book offered me just the one somewhat boring head to get into and hardly any insights into other people.
I know that The Handmaid's Tale is renowned and well loved by many.
I know that many are using it as an example of some of the potential slippery slope politics of today.
However, I have read a Margaret Atwood book before. I did not like it, and I do not like this one either. I don't like the way she writes and tells a story. I don't find her stories engaging. I just wanted the story to hurry up and end after awhile. They go nowhere for ages and then stop. They don't end, they just stop.
This book gave me a jolt out of it every time "recent" cultural touchstones were so clearly 1980s. And much of the back story was not well-formed.
I realize I am in the minority for my dislike of this book, but I'm just not a Margaret Atwood fan.
Astonishingly good.
I already knew I liked Margaret Atwood. The whole MaddAdam trilogy was brilliant, thought provoking and fun. So I went into the Handmaid's Tale ready to find more of her very strong, direct and raw storytelling.
I wasn't disappointed. The Handmaid's Tale paints a picture of a very distopian possible future, where (Chrsitian) religious zeal has taken over government, morality and politics. It centers on the situation women find themselves in as part of this overly puritanical and totalitarian regime. They are divided in what you could call "castes", and they fear and control each other.
Through this Tale, Atwood reflects about the realities of power, control, fear, and agency. The women are forbidden to access knowledge. The men are separated from them and the isolation and loneliness rules this world.
It felt a little bit like a woman-centric 1984 (and I think that's a good thing) and it really …
I already knew I liked Margaret Atwood. The whole MaddAdam trilogy was brilliant, thought provoking and fun. So I went into the Handmaid's Tale ready to find more of her very strong, direct and raw storytelling.
I wasn't disappointed. The Handmaid's Tale paints a picture of a very distopian possible future, where (Chrsitian) religious zeal has taken over government, morality and politics. It centers on the situation women find themselves in as part of this overly puritanical and totalitarian regime. They are divided in what you could call "castes", and they fear and control each other.
Through this Tale, Atwood reflects about the realities of power, control, fear, and agency. The women are forbidden to access knowledge. The men are separated from them and the isolation and loneliness rules this world.
It felt a little bit like a woman-centric 1984 (and I think that's a good thing) and it really brought home the impotence brought about by ignorance and disconnection from others. It is also mysterious in its own way, and, no spoilers, the epilogue makes a really important contribution to the context of the story.
It felt a very relevant read in these times of religious intolerance and huge discussions about human (and particularly women's) rights.
I also hear that a TV series is being cast and will be filmed soon, based on this book. I suspect it is going to become very popular soon. So join the cool kids and give it a read! :)
La servante écarlate, c’est le Petit chaperon rouge sous l’Inquisition, plus ou moins. La narratrice ne nous explique pas grand-chose de ce qui a conduit à l’avènement d’une société patriarcale et totalitaire, dominée par la religion. Ses allusions, ses souvenirs sont les seuls indices dont le lecteur dispose.[...]
[La suite sur mon blog, merci :)]
What an intense book. As dystopias go, this is one of the most oppressive, dark and inhumane ones in any book I have read.
Most people would be familiar with Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale; a Christian totalitarian theocracy has overthrown the US government and are controlling reproduction. Set in the not so distant future, this dystopian society serves as a platform for Margaret Atwood to explore some real issues. Written in 1985, it is surprising to think that these themes and issues are still relevant thirty years later.
When I read this novel about four years ago, I think I missed the point, saying “I felt like Margaret Atwood spent too much time trying to explain the dystopian world in which The Handmaid’s Tale is set rather than the story itself.” I obviously was reading this book for its plot rather than trying to understand what Atwood wanted to say. To be fair I recognised this, citing “I understand she was trying to create a world that was a metaphor of a …
Most people would be familiar with Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale; a Christian totalitarian theocracy has overthrown the US government and are controlling reproduction. Set in the not so distant future, this dystopian society serves as a platform for Margaret Atwood to explore some real issues. Written in 1985, it is surprising to think that these themes and issues are still relevant thirty years later.
When I read this novel about four years ago, I think I missed the point, saying “I felt like Margaret Atwood spent too much time trying to explain the dystopian world in which The Handmaid’s Tale is set rather than the story itself.” I obviously was reading this book for its plot rather than trying to understand what Atwood wanted to say. To be fair I recognised this, citing “I understand she was trying to create a world that was a metaphor of a totalitarian society and explore the issue of women’s right” but even that makes me sound naive or stupid. One reason I like rereading books is for the fact that it shows me how much I have improved as a reader. I gave The Handmaid’s Tale three stars when I read it in 2011, but it is now clear to me that this is a brilliant novel and needs a much higher rating.
Looking at this dystopian society; the government wants control over reproduction. To do this, women become a political tool, rather than humans. This government was created due to a dramatic decrease in birth rates. Women become the property of their husband or the state. Women are not allowed to vote, have jobs, read or anything else that might make them have individual thoughts.
“There is no such thing as a sterile man anymore, not officially. There are only women who are fruitful and women who are barren, that’s the law.”
This one quote really summed up this novel for me; the whole idea that women are only useful for one thing. Women are considered subhuman and their only use involves their ovaries and womb. Even the main character, Offred reflects in one scene that her body was an instrument of passion and desire but now she has only one purpose; reproduction. She does not consider it rape, because she signed up to be a Handmaid; but what other choice did she have? In fact rape is severely punished and the government believes the women are protected. Yet would it not be considered rape if we take away the women’s rights, including their right to give consent?
There are many layers that could be explored within The Handmaid’s Tale, I would like to explore the novel deeper. I think looking at this book from a religious angle would be interesting as well, and I think I will need to give it a reread before considering that. I am glad to give this book another go; rereading this was eye opening and really highlighted just how much I have grown. One thing I found humorous was that Margaret Atwood set this book in the United States of America and references escaping to safety in Canada. This is an iconic novel and Atwood is an author well worth exploring; having said that, I have only read The Handmaid’s Tale and the MaddAddam trilogy. Lucky for me, I have so many more Margaret Atwood novels to explore.
This review originally appeared on my blog; www.knowledgelost.org/book-reviews/genre/classic/the-handmaids-tale-by-margaret-atwood/
